The USS Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group (CSG) is set to arrive in the Red Sea to protect freedom of navigation and demonstrate the United States' commitment to regional stability.

It is expected to enter the US Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility following an exercise in the Indo-Pacific region that concluded June 29.

The CSG is comprised of aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, Carrier Air Wing 11 and Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Russell, USS Daniel K. Inouye and USS Halsey.

The CSG is heading to the Middle East "to deter aggression, safeguard regional stability, and protect freedom of navigation in the region," CENTCOM said on X on June 22.

The deployment of the USS Theodore Roosevelt comes after the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier headed home from the region on June 22 following a more than seven-month deployment.

The Eisenhower spent much of its deployment involved in Operation Prosperity Guardian, the US-led multinational effort to protect merchant vessels moving through the region from attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis.

More than 20 nations have agreed to participate in the US-led operation, which began in December.

The effort there has been described as the most kinetic battle the US Navy has faced since World War II.

The Houthis have launched about 190 attacks since November, affecting the interests of 65 countries and 29 major energy and shipping companies, per Dryad Global.

Supporting partners worldwide

The Theodore Roosevelt CSG earlier demonstrated the United States' commitment to partner nations by taking part in exercise Freedom Edge, the US Navy's inaugural, trilateral, multi-domain exercise with Japan and South Korea.

The exercise, which took place June 27-29 in the East China Sea, focused on cooperative ballistic missile defense, air defense, anti-submarine warfare, search and rescue, maritime interdiction and defensive cyber training.

The CSG along with a P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft drilled with Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) destroyer helicopter carrier JS Ise, destroyer JS Atago and a JMSDF P-1 MPA.

The Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN) took part with destroyers ROKS Seoae-Ryu-Seong-ryong and ROKS Gang Gam-Chan, an ROKN Lynx helicopter, an ROKN P-3C Orion MPA and F-16 Falcon fighters from the South Korean air force.

The United States, Japan and South Korea agreed to the exercise during the Camp David summit last August.

The drill represented the first large-scale, multi-domain exercise among the three countries, which previously conducted only shorter trilateral maritime and aerial drills.